Illinois General Assembly - Full Text of Public Act 097-0916
Illinois General Assembly

Previous General Assemblies

Public Act 097-0916


 

Public Act 0916 97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY



 


 
Public Act 097-0916
 
HB0404 EnrolledLRB097 03918 ASK 43957 b

    AN ACT concerning State government.
 
    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
 
    Section 5. The State Employee Housing Act is amended by
changing Sections 5-5, 5-10, 5-15, 5-20, 5-25, 5-30, and 5-35
as follows:
 
    (5 ILCS 412/5-5)
    Sec. 5-5. Policy development. The Department of
Conservation, the Department of Corrections, the Historic
Preservation Agency, the University of Illinois, and the
University of Illinois Foundation shall each develop a policy
on housing for State employees that addresses the following:
        (1) Purpose of providing housing.
        (2) Application procedures.
        (3) Eligibility.
        (4) Tenant selection criteria.
        (5) Accounting for housing in employee compensation.
        (6) Employee responsibilities that necessitate
    State-provided housing.
        (7) Procedures for setting and adjusting rent,
    security deposits, and utility payments.
        (8) Documented justification for State ownership of
    each house or property.
(Source: P.A. 89-214, eff. 8-4-95.)
 
    (5 ILCS 412/5-10)
    Sec. 5-10. Taxable status. The Department of Agriculture,
the Department of Conservation, the Department of Corrections,
the Department of Veterans' Affairs, and the University of
Illinois shall each develop procedures to determine whether
housing provided to employees and non-employees is subject to
taxation. The Department of Revenue and the Internal Revenue
Service may be consulted to determine the appropriate means of
reporting the value of housing provided at below fair market
rent to those who do not meet all established criteria.
(Source: P.A. 89-214, eff. 8-4-95.)
 
    (5 ILCS 412/5-15)
    Sec. 5-15. Rental housing. The Department of Conservation,
the Department of Corrections, the Historic Preservation
Agency, the Department of Transportation, the University of
Illinois, and the University of Illinois Foundation shall each
analyze the need for providing low-rent housing to its
employees and shall consider alternatives to State-owned
housing. Rent charged for State-owned housing shall be
evaluated every 3 years for adjustments, including that
necessitated by changing economic conditions.
(Source: P.A. 89-214, eff. 8-4-95.)
 
    (5 ILCS 412/5-20)
    Sec. 5-20. Security deposit. The Department of
Conservation, the Department of Corrections, the Department of
Transportation, the Historic Preservation Agency, the
University of Illinois, and the University of Illinois
Foundation shall each analyze the need for all employee and
non-employee tenants of State-owned housing to pay a reasonable
security deposit and may each collect security deposits and
maintain them in interest-bearing accounts.
(Source: P.A. 89-214, eff. 8-4-95.)
 
    (5 ILCS 412/5-25)
    Sec. 5-25. Utilities. The Department of Conservation, the
Department of Corrections, the Historic Preservation Agency,
and the University of Illinois may each require its employees
for whom it provides housing to pay their own utilities. If
direct utility payment is required, a utility schedule shall be
established for employees who can not directly pay utilities
due to extenuating circumstances, such as occupancy of
dormitories not individually metered.
(Source: P.A. 89-214, eff. 8-4-95.)
 
    (5 ILCS 412/5-30)
    Sec. 5-30. Tenant selection. The Department of
Conservation, the Department of Corrections, the Historic
Preservation Agency, the Department of Transportation, the
University of Illinois, and the University of Illinois
Foundation shall each develop and maintain application forms
for its State-owned housing, written criteria for selecting
employee tenants, and records of decisions as to who was
selected to receive State housing and why they were selected.
(Source: P.A. 89-214, eff. 8-4-95.)
 
    (5 ILCS 412/5-35)
    Sec. 5-35. Housing justification. The Department of
Conservation, the Historic Preservation Agency, and the
University of Illinois shall each develop written criteria for
determining which employment positions necessitate provision
of State housing. The criteria shall include the specific
employee responsibilities that can only be performed
effectively by occupying State housing.
(Source: P.A. 89-214, eff. 8-4-95.)
 
    (15 ILCS 315/Act rep.)
    Section 8. The State Museum Construction Act is repealed.
 
    (20 ILCS 805/805-320 rep.)
    (20 ILCS 805/805-435 rep.)
    (20 ILCS 805/805-505 rep.)
    Section 10. The Department of Natural Resources
(Conservation) Law of the Civil Administrative Code of Illinois
is amended by repealing Sections 805-320, 805-435, and 805-505.
 
    Section 15. The Illinois Geographic Information Council
Act is amended by changing Sections 5-20 and 5-30 as follows:
 
    (20 ILCS 1128/5-20)
    Sec. 5-20. Meetings. The Council shall meet upon the call
of its chairmen and shall meet at least twice a year.
(Source: P.A. 94-961, eff. 6-27-06.)
 
    (20 ILCS 1128/5-30)
    Sec. 5-30. Evaluation of proposals.
    The Council shall evaluate proposals made by the User
Advisory Committee and make recommendations to the Governor and
General Assembly on the efficient development, use, and funding
of geographic information management technology (GIMT) for
Illinois' State, regional, local, and academic agencies and
institutions.
    These include:
        (1) Standards for the collection (geodetic),
    maintenance, dissemination, and documentation of spatial
    data, consistent with established and on-going development
    of national standards and guidelines when applicable.
        (2) Funding strategies that encourage and support the
    use of GIMT at local levels of government.
        (3) Examining the impacts of the Freedom of Information
    Act as it applies to digital data dissemination.
        (4) Statewide basemap development.
        (5) The development of multiyear strategies for
    integration of GIMT in Illinois.
        (6) (Blank). The Council shall report to the Governor
    and the General Assembly by January 31st of each year on:
            (a) the current status of efforts to integrate GIMT
        into the decision making, evaluation, planning, and
        management activities of State and local governments;
            (b) the current status of integration of State and
        local government efforts with those of the federal
        government and the private sector; and
            (c) Council objectives for the next 12-month
        period.
        (7) As necessary, the Council may enter into agreements
    with professional non-profit organizations to achieve its
    objectives.
        (8) The Council may accept grants and gifts from
    corporations, for-profit or not-for-profit, or
    associations for the purpose of conducting research,
    evaluations, or demonstration projects directed towards
    the development of an integrated statewide system of
    geographic information management technology.
(Source: P.A. 94-961, eff. 6-27-06.)
 
    (20 ILCS 1128/5-15 rep.)
    Section 20. The Illinois Geographic Information Council
Act is amended by repealing Section 5-15.
 
    (30 ILCS 768/Act rep.)
    Section 27. The Park and Recreational Facility
Construction Act is repealed.
 
    Section 30. The Counties Code is amended by changing
Section 5-1062 as follows:
 
    (55 ILCS 5/5-1062)  (from Ch. 34, par. 5-1062)
    Sec. 5-1062. Stormwater management.
    (a) The purpose of this Section is to allow management and
mitigation of the effects of urbanization on stormwater
drainage in metropolitan counties located in the area served by
the Northeastern Illinois Planning Commission, and references
to "county" in this Section shall apply only to those counties.
This Section shall not apply to any county with a population in
excess of 1,500,000, except as provided in subsection (c). The
purpose of this Section shall be achieved by:
        (1) consolidating the existing stormwater management
    framework into a united, countywide structure;
        (2) setting minimum standards for floodplain and
    stormwater management; and
        (3) preparing a countywide plan for the management of
    stormwater runoff, including the management of natural and
    man-made drainageways. The countywide plan may incorporate
    watershed plans.
    (b) A stormwater management planning committee shall be
established by county board resolution, with its membership
consisting of equal numbers of county board and municipal
representatives from each county board district, and such other
members as may be determined by the county and municipal
members. However, if the county has more than 6 county board
districts, the county board may by ordinance divide the county
into not less than 6 areas of approximately equal population,
to be used instead of county board districts for the purpose of
determining representation on the stormwater management
planning committee.
    The county board members shall be appointed by the chairman
of the county board. Municipal members from each county board
district or other represented area shall be appointed by a
majority vote of the mayors of those municipalities which have
the greatest percentage of their respective populations
residing in such county board district or other represented
area. All municipal and county board representatives shall be
entitled to a vote; the other members shall be nonvoting
members, unless authorized to vote by the unanimous consent of
the municipal and county board representatives. A municipality
that is located in more than one county may choose, at the time
of formation of the stormwater management planning committee
and based on watershed boundaries, to participate in the
stormwater management planning program of either or both of the
counties. Subcommittees of the stormwater management planning
committee may be established to serve a portion of the county
or a particular drainage basin that has similar stormwater
management needs. The stormwater management planning committee
shall adopt by-laws, by a majority vote of the county and
municipal members, to govern the functions of the committee and
its subcommittees. Officers of the committee shall include a
chair and vice chair, one of whom shall be a county
representative and one a municipal representative.
    The principal duties of the committee shall be to develop a
stormwater management plan for presentation to and approval by
the county board, and to direct the plan's implementation and
revision. The committee may retain engineering, legal and
financial advisors and inspection personnel. The committee
shall meet at least quarterly and shall hold at least one
public meeting during the preparation of the plan and prior to
its submittal to the county board.
    (c) In the preparation of a stormwater management plan, a
county stormwater management planning committee shall
coordinate the planning process with each adjoining county to
ensure that recommended stormwater projects will have no
significant impact on the levels or flows of stormwaters in
inter-county watersheds or on the capacity of existing and
planned stormwater retention facilities. An adopted stormwater
management plan shall identify steps taken by the county to
coordinate the development of plan recommendations with
adjoining counties.
    (d) (Blank). Before the stormwater management planning
committee recommends to the county board a stormwater
management plan for the county or a portion thereof, it shall
submit the plan to the Office of Water Resources of the
Department of Natural Resources and to the Northeastern
Illinois Planning Commission for review and recommendations.
The Office and the Commission, in reviewing the plan, shall
consider such factors as impacts on the levels or flows in
rivers and streams and the cumulative effects of stormwater
discharges on flood levels. The Office of Water Resources shall
determine whether the plan or ordinances enacted to implement
the plan complies with the requirements of subsection (f).
Within a period not to exceed 60 days, the review comments and
recommendations shall be submitted to the stormwater
management planning committee for consideration. Any
amendments to the plan shall be submitted to the Office and the
Commission for review.
    (e) Prior to recommending the plan to the county board, the
stormwater management planning committee shall hold at least
one public hearing thereon and shall afford interested persons
an opportunity to be heard. The hearing shall be held in the
county seat. Notice of the hearing shall be published at least
once no less than 15 days in advance thereof in a newspaper of
general circulation published in the county. The notice shall
state the time and place of the hearing and the place where
copies of the proposed plan will be accessible for examination
by interested parties. If an affected municipality having a
stormwater management plan adopted by ordinance wishes to
protest the proposed county plan provisions, it shall appear at
the hearing and submit in writing specific proposals to the
stormwater management planning committee. After consideration
of the matters raised at the hearing, the committee may amend
or approve the plan and recommend it to the county board for
adoption.
    The county board may enact the proposed plan by ordinance.
If the proposals for modification of the plan made by an
affected municipality having a stormwater management plan are
not included in the proposed county plan, and the municipality
affected by the plan opposes adoption of the county plan by
resolution of its corporate authorities, approval of the county
plan shall require an affirmative vote of at least two-thirds
of the county board members present and voting. If the county
board wishes to amend the county plan, it shall submit in
writing specific proposals to the stormwater management
planning committee. If the proposals are not approved by the
committee, or are opposed by resolution of the corporate
authorities of an affected municipality having a municipal
stormwater management plan, amendment of the plan shall require
an affirmative vote of at least two-thirds of the county board
members present and voting.
    (f) The county board may prescribe by ordinance reasonable
rules and regulations for floodplain management and for
governing the location, width, course and release rate of all
stormwater runoff channels, streams and basins in the county,
in accordance with the adopted stormwater management plan.
These rules and regulations shall, at a minimum, meet the
standards for floodplain management established by the Office
of Water Resources and the requirements of the Federal
Emergency Management Agency for participation in the National
Flood Insurance Program.
    (g) In accordance with, and if recommended in, the adopted
stormwater management plan, the county board may adopt a
schedule of fees as may be necessary to mitigate the effects of
increased stormwater runoff resulting from new development.
The fees shall not exceed the cost of satisfying the onsite
stormwater retention or detention requirements of the adopted
stormwater management plan. The fees shall be used to finance
activities undertaken by the county or its included
municipalities to mitigate the effects of urban stormwater
runoff by providing regional stormwater retention or detention
facilities, as identified in the county plan. All such fees
collected by the county shall be held in a separate fund, and
shall be expended only in the watershed within which they were
collected.
    (h) For the purpose of implementing this Section and for
the development, design, planning, construction, operation and
maintenance of stormwater facilities provided for in the
stormwater management plan, a county board that has established
a stormwater management planning committee pursuant to this
Section may cause an annual tax of not to exceed 0.20% of the
value, as equalized or assessed by the Department of Revenue,
of all taxable property in the county to be levied upon all the
taxable property in the county. The tax shall be in addition to
all other taxes authorized by law to be levied and collected in
the county and shall be in addition to the maximum tax rate
authorized by law for general county purposes. The 0.20%
limitation provided in this Section may be increased or
decreased by referendum in accordance with the provisions of
Sections 18-120, 18-125, and 18-130 of the Property Tax Code.
    Any revenues generated as a result of ownership or
operation of facilities or land acquired with the tax funds
collected pursuant to this subsection (h) shall be held in a
separate fund and be used either to abate such property tax or
for implementing this Section.
    However, unless at least part of the county has been
declared after July 1, 1986 by presidential proclamation to be
a disaster area as a result of flooding, the tax authorized by
this subsection (h) shall not be levied until the question of
its adoption, either for a specified period or indefinitely,
has been submitted to the electors thereof and approved by a
majority of those voting on the question. This question may be
submitted at any election held in the county after the adoption
of a resolution by the county board providing for the
submission of the question to the electors of the county. The
county board shall certify the resolution and proposition to
the proper election officials, who shall submit the proposition
at an election in accordance with the general election law. If
a majority of the votes cast on the question is in favor of the
levy of the tax, it may thereafter be levied in the county for
the specified period or indefinitely, as provided in the
proposition. The question shall be put in substantially the
following form:
-------------------------------------------------------------
    Shall an annual tax be levied
for stormwater management purposes            YES
(for a period of not more than
...... years) at a rate not exceeding      ------------------
.....% of the equalized assessed
value of the taxable property of              NO
........ County?
-------------------------------------------------------------
    (i) Upon the creation and implementation of a county
stormwater management plan, the county may petition the circuit
court to dissolve any or all drainage districts created
pursuant to the Illinois Drainage Code or predecessor Acts
which are located entirely within the area of the county
covered by the plan.
    However, any active drainage district implementing a plan
that is consistent with and at least as stringent as the county
stormwater management plan may petition the stormwater
management planning committee for exception from dissolution.
Upon filing of the petition, the committee shall set a date for
hearing not less than 2 weeks, nor more than 4 weeks, from the
filing thereof, and the committee shall give at least one
week's notice of the hearing in one or more newspapers of
general circulation within the district, and in addition shall
cause a copy of the notice to be personally served upon each of
the trustees of the district. At the hearing, the committee
shall hear the district's petition and allow the district
trustees and any interested parties an opportunity to present
oral and written evidence. The committee shall render its
decision upon the petition for exception from dissolution based
upon the best interests of the residents of the district. In
the event that the exception is not allowed, the district may
file a petition within 30 days of the decision with the circuit
court. In that case, the notice and hearing requirements for
the court shall be the same as herein provided for the
committee. The court shall likewise render its decision of
whether to dissolve the district based upon the best interests
of residents of the district.
    The dissolution of any drainage district shall not affect
the obligation of any bonds issued or contracts entered into by
the district nor invalidate the levy, extension or collection
of any taxes or special assessments upon the property in the
former drainage district. All property and obligations of the
former drainage district shall be assumed and managed by the
county, and the debts of the former drainage district shall be
discharged as soon as practicable.
    If a drainage district lies only partly within a county
that adopts a county stormwater management plan, the county may
petition the circuit court to disconnect from the drainage
district that portion of the district that lies within that
county. The property of the drainage district within the
disconnected area shall be assumed and managed by the county.
The county shall also assume a portion of the drainage
district's debt at the time of disconnection, based on the
portion of the value of the taxable property of the drainage
district which is located within the area being disconnected.
    The operations of any drainage district that continues to
exist in a county that has adopted a stormwater management plan
in accordance with this Section shall be in accordance with the
adopted plan.
    (j) Any county that has adopted a county stormwater
management plan under this Section may, after 10 days written
notice to the owner or occupant, enter upon any lands or waters
within the county for the purpose of inspecting stormwater
facilities or causing the removal of any obstruction to an
affected watercourse. The county shall be responsible for any
damages occasioned thereby.
    (k) Upon petition of the municipality, and based on a
finding of the stormwater management planning committee, the
county shall not enforce rules and regulations adopted by the
county in any municipality located wholly or partly within the
county that has a municipal stormwater management ordinance
that is consistent with and at least as stringent as the county
plan and ordinance, and is being enforced by the municipal
authorities.
    (l) A county may issue general obligation bonds for
implementing any stormwater plan adopted under this Section in
the manner prescribed in Section 5-1012; except that the
referendum requirement of Section 5-1012 shall not apply to
bonds issued pursuant to this Section on which the principal
and interest are to be paid entirely out of funds generated by
the taxes and fees authorized by this Section.
    (m) The powers authorized by this Section may be
implemented by the county board for a portion of the county
subject to similar stormwater management needs.
    (n) The powers and taxes authorized by this Section are in
addition to the powers and taxes authorized by Division 5-15;
in exercising its powers under this Section, a county shall not
be subject to the restrictions and requirements of that
Division.
    (o) Pursuant to paragraphs (g) and (i) of Section 6 of
Article VII of the Illinois Constitution, this Section
specifically denies and limits the exercise of any power which
is inconsistent herewith by home rule units in any county with
a population of less than 1,500,000 in the area served by the
Northeastern Illinois Planning Commission. This Section does
not prohibit the concurrent exercise of powers consistent
herewith.
(Source: P.A. 88-670, eff. 12-2-94; 89-445, eff. 2-7-96.)
 
    Section 45. The Energy Assistance Act is amended by
changing Section 5 as follows:
 
    (305 ILCS 20/5)  (from Ch. 111 2/3, par. 1405)
    Sec. 5. Policy Advisory Council.
    (a) Within the Department of Commerce and Economic
Opportunity is created a Low Income Energy Assistance Policy
Advisory Council.
    (b) The Council shall be chaired by the Director of
Commerce and Economic Opportunity or his or her designee. There
shall be 19 20 members of the Low Income Energy Assistance
Policy Advisory Council, including the chairperson and the
following members:
        (1) one member designated by the Illinois Commerce
    Commission;
        (2) (blank); one member designated by the Illinois
    Department of Natural Resources;
        (3) one member designated by the Illinois Energy
    Association to represent electric public utilities serving
    in excess of 1 million customers in this State;
        (4) one member agreed upon by gas public utilities that
    serve more than 500,000 and fewer than 1,500,000 customers
    in this State;
        (5) one member agreed upon by gas public utilities that
    serve 1,500,000 or more customers in this State;
        (6) one member designated by the Illinois Energy
    Association to represent combination gas and electric
    public utilities;
        (7) one member agreed upon by the Illinois Municipal
    Electric Agency and the Association of Illinois Electric
    Cooperatives;
        (8) one member agreed upon by the Illinois Industrial
    Energy Consumers;
        (9) three members designated by the Department to
    represent low income energy consumers;
        (10) two members designated by the Illinois Community
    Action Association to represent local agencies that assist
    in the administration of this Act;
        (11) one member designated by the Citizens Utility
    Board to represent residential energy consumers;
        (12) one member designated by the Illinois Retail
    Merchants Association to represent commercial energy
    customers;
        (13) one member designated by the Department to
    represent independent energy providers; and
        (14) three members designated by the Mayor of the City
    of Chicago.
    (c) Designated and appointed members shall serve 2 year
terms and until their successors are appointed and qualified.
The designating organization shall notify the chairperson of
any changes or substitutions of a designee within 10 business
days of a change or substitution. Members shall serve without
compensation, but may receive reimbursement for actual costs
incurred in fulfilling their duties as members of the Council.
    (d) The Council shall have the following duties:
        (1) to monitor the administration of this Act to ensure
    effective, efficient, and coordinated program development
    and implementation;
        (2) to assist the Department in developing and
    administering rules and regulations required to be
    promulgated pursuant to this Act in a manner consistent
    with the purpose and objectives of this Act;
        (3) to facilitate and coordinate the collection and
    exchange of all program data and other information needed
    by the Department and others in fulfilling their duties
    pursuant to this Act;
        (4) to advise the Department on the proper level of
    support required for effective administration of the Act;
        (5) to provide a written opinion concerning any
    regulation proposed pursuant to this Act, and to review and
    comment on any energy assistance or related plan required
    to be prepared by the Department;
        (6) to advise the Department on the use of funds
    collected pursuant to Section 11 of this Act, and on any
    changes to existing low income energy assistance programs
    to make effective use of such funds, so long as such uses
    and changes are consistent with the requirements of the
    Act.
(Source: P.A. 94-793, eff. 5-19-06.)
 
    (305 ILCS 20/8 rep.)
    Section 50. The Energy Assistance Act is amended by
repealing Section 8.
 
    Section 55. The Interstate Ozone Transport Oversight Act is
amended by changing Section 20 as follows:
 
    (415 ILCS 130/20)
    Sec. 20. Legislative referral and public hearings.
    (a) Not later than 10 days after the development of any
proposed memorandum of understanding by the Ozone Transport
Assessment Group potentially requiring the State of Illinois to
undertake emission reductions in addition to those specified by
the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990, or subsequent to the
issuance of a request made by the United States Environmental
Protection Agency on or after June 1, 1997 for submission of a
State Implementation Plan for Illinois relating to ozone
attainment and before submission of the Plan, the Director
shall submit the proposed memorandum of understanding or State
Implementation Plan to the House Committee and the Senate
Committee for their consideration. At that time, the Director
shall also submit information detailing any alternate
strategies.
    (b) To assist the legislative review required by this Act,
the Department of Natural Resources and the Department of
Commerce and Economic Opportunity shall conduct a joint study
of the impacts on the State's economy which may result from
implementation of the emission reduction strategies contained
within any proposed memorandum of understanding or State
Implementation Plan relating to ozone and from implementation
of any alternate strategies. The study shall include, but not
be limited to, the impacts on economic development, employment,
utility costs and rates, personal income, and industrial
competitiveness which may result from implementation of the
emission reduction strategies contained within any proposed
memorandum of agreement or State Implementation Plan relating
to ozone and from implementation of any alternate strategies.
The study shall be submitted to the House Committee and Senate
Committee not less than 10 days prior to any scheduled hearing
conducted pursuant to subsection (c) of this Section.
    (c) Upon receipt of the information required by subsections
(a) and (b) of this Section, the House Committee and Senate
Committee shall each convene one or more public hearings to
receive comments from agencies of government and other
interested parties on the memorandum of understanding's or
State Implementation Plan's prospective economic and
environmental impacts, including its impacts on energy use,
economic development, utility costs and rates, and
competitiveness. Additionally, comments shall be received on
the prospective economic and environmental impacts, including
impacts on energy use, economic development, utility costs and
rates, and competitiveness, which may result from
implementation of any alternate strategies.
(Source: P.A. 94-793, eff. 5-19-06.)
 
    (515 ILCS 5/1-235 rep.)
    Section 60. The Fish and Aquatic Life Code is amended by
repealing Section 1-235.
 
    (520 ILCS 20/2 rep.)
    (520 ILCS 20/6 rep.)
    (520 ILCS 20/7 rep.)
    (520 ILCS 20/8 rep.)
    (520 ILCS 20/9 rep.)
    Section 65. The Wildlife Habitat Management Areas Act is
amended by repealing Sections 2, 6, 7, 8, and 9.
 
    Section 70. The Rivers, Lakes, and Streams Act is amended
by changing Section 23a as follows:
 
    (615 ILCS 5/23a)  (from Ch. 19, par. 70a)
    Sec. 23a. The Department is authorized to carry out
inspections of any dam within the State, and to establish
standards and issue permits for the safe construction of new
dams and the reconstruction, repair, operation and maintenance
of all existing dams. If any inspection carried out by the
Department or by a federal agency in which the Department
concurs determines that a dam is in an unsafe condition, the
Department shall so notify the appropriate public officials of
the affected city or county, the State's Attorney of the county
in which the dam is located, and the Illinois Emergency
Management Agency.
    The Department may compel the installation of fishways in
dams wherever deemed necessary.
    The Department may establish by rule minimum water levels
for water behind dams on streams and rivers as necessary to
preserve the fish and other aquatic life and to safeguard the
health of the community.
    Upon a determination of the Department that a dam
constitutes a serious threat to life or a threat of substantial
property damage, the Department may issue orders to require
changes in the structure or its operation or maintenance
necessary for proper control of water levels at normal stages
and for the disposal of flood waters and for the protection of
navigation and any persons or property situated downstream from
the dam or to otherwise remove the threat provided, however,
that no existing dam, based solely upon the enactment by any
governmental unit of any new rule, regulation, ordinance, law,
or other requirement passed after the construction of the dam,
shall be deemed to constitute a serious threat to life or a
threat of substantial property damage if it was designed and
constructed under a permit from the State of Illinois in
conformance with all applicable standards existing at the time
of its construction and is in good repair.
    The Department shall be required, prior to taking any
action to compel alteration or breaching of any dam, to furnish
in writing to the owner of the dam (1) a detailed and specific
list of defects discovered in the course of inspection of the
dam, including the specific nature of any inadequacies in the
capacity of the spillway system and any indications of seepage,
erosion, or other evidence of structural deficiency in the dam
or spillway; and (2) a statement of the applicable standards
that if complied with by the owner of the dam would put the dam
into compliance with the State's requirements.
    No order shall be issued requiring alteration of any
existing dam until after notice and opportunity for hearing has
been provided by the Department to the dam owners. If the owner
or owners of the dam are unknown, notice will be provided by
publication in a newspaper of general circulation in the county
in which the structure is located. Any order issued under this
Section shall include a statement of the findings supporting
the order.
    Opportunity for hearing is not required in emergency
situations when the Department finds there is imminent hazard
to personal public safety of people.
    The Department may enforce the provisions of this Section
and of rules and orders issued hereunder by injunction or other
appropriate action.
    Neither the Department of Natural Resources nor employees
or agents of the Department shall be liable for damages
sustained through the partial or total failure of any dam or
the operation or maintenance of any dam by reason of the
Department's regulation thereof. Nothing in this Act shall
relieve an owner or operator of a dam from the legal duties,
obligations, and liabilities arising from ownership or
operation.
    The Department shall review and update its operations
manuals for the Algonquin Dam and the William G. Stratton Lock
and Dam on an annual basis.
(Source: P.A. 96-388, eff. 1-1-10.)
 
    Section 999. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
becoming law.

Effective Date: 08/09/2012